Congaree National Parkis another plus that we love to go to. Located smack-dab in the middle of South Carolina, just a half-hour’s drive from the capital city of Columbia, Congaree National Park preserves North America’s largest remaining old-growth bottomland forest. Although this nearly 27,000-acre park has around 600 acres of piney uplands, including about 200 acres of valuable Longleaf pine habitat, its ecological centerpiece is a virtually pristine 12,000-acre tract of floodplain forest.
This national park offers a unique experience where you can learn about the biological wildlife as well as the history of the swamps. There are several trails you can choose to follow and all are elevated above the swamps and offer places to sit and take in the beauty of the swamps. There are over 25 miles of hiking trails and 2.4 miles of boardwalk loop trail. The boardwalk loop trail provides wheelchair access to Weston Lake and foot access to other trails that wind through the Congaree floodplain forest. Colored markers make the trails easy to follow. Guided walks and canoe trips are offered free of charge.
When we went be couldn’t believe how beautiful and peaceful it was. My husband and I decided to visit Congaree National Park, it was in March and it was pretty out. We decided to walk the 2.4 Miles of boardwalk loop trail. There was so much to see, The scenery along the boardwalk is impressive – various plants, giant trees, and wildlife. Sitting at Weston Lake watching several turtles sun themselves on drift wood was one of our favorite memories of Congaree.
This park is a must see. The visitors center is wonderful, the staff are extremely helpful and the exhibits are great. The visitor’s center is well lighted and contains displays of early civilization inhabitants, as well as stuffed animals representing those found in the park. A small gift shop is also available there, as well as brochures and a map for a self guided walk.
Congaree National Park is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The Visitor Center is open 9:00 am-5:00 pm 7 days per week from October 1-March 31. The facility is open 9:00 am-5:00 pm Sunday-Thursday and 9:00 am-7:00 pm Friday and Saturday from April 1-September 30 each year.
For more information go to the website HERE
Wow I love the bridge. My family loves to take hikes and do outdoorsy things…We are in Kentucky..but Congaree National Park will definitely be kept in mind if we every visit that area!
I would love to stroll along that wooden walkway which is, by the way, protecting the surrounding plant and wildlife. It looks so peaceful. Too bad I don’t live close enough to visit–if I ever get down there I will be sure to visit!
Gorgeous park! It reminded me of a state park we have here named Blue Springs! Would love to visit this one sometime, I can just imagine in the summer how gorgeous it should also be!
Lovely photos! It’s so nice to go on nature walks.
Oh that is beautiful. I absolutely love walking in nature preserves. Such beauty you can’t find anywhere else!
This looks like a great place to go hiking!
This looks like a beautiful place to visit
Really beautiful. It must be lovely to have a place like that to hike and see nature at its best.
That looks like an awesome park. That’s one of the things I miss about living in NC they had amazing parks.
We love to hit up National Parks! I’ll have to add this one to our list. Looks beautiful and I bet we’d learn a lot there too!
Sounds like a great place to visit! We have a goal of visiting every state in the nation… eventually, but found that we weren’t checking very many states off the list so we are doing state parks first. (We are in Texas so there are a lot!) I figure making the move to national parks will be a great way to step it up in the years to come. Thanks for letting us know about this one!
wow……I REALLY REALLY want to go there! thank ou for letting me know about this place 🙂
I love our national parks! I am not an outdoor person, but visiting national parks is an exception I make. What beautiful land and history.
I have always wanted to go to S. Carolina…the bridge is breathtaking. Makes me want to go even more.
Wow so pretty!! I love going to places like that!! Thanks for sharing!
That looks like a fabulous getaway. I know my kids love those raised walks!
Wow those pictures are so pretty. I’ve never been to South Carolina, but when I visit I’d love to visit the national park. I live in the mountains and I love nature.
I love visiting national parks! We do it every summer. Of course we happen to live right outside quite a number of them here in the West. But I’d love to visit some new ones too. This one looks amazing!!
putting this on my list of places to visit
How pretty is that!!!
Living here in Vegas, we have some beautiful views, but it’s all so… brown… I miss the green!
We need to go there